"how to allow a classical installation of o-charts_pi replacing oernc_pi and oesenc_p

[filochard]

Hi

I have been packaging OpenCPN and its plugins, since version 3.2.2, for rpm based linux distributions (such as Fedora, OpenSuse, Mageia, Mandriva, PCLinux..)

I provided packages for oernc-plugin and oesenc-plugin that allowed to display charts bought on o-charts.org for OpenCPN 5.2.4 (still used until version 5.6.2 is ready : I'm now preparing packages to update OpenCPN for these distributions)

Now that the Plugin Manager is promoted some plugins can't anymore be packaged for a classical installation...

It's not a problem for Windows, nor for MacOS nor for Debian or Ubuntu since the plugins can be installed or updated by the Plugin Manager
(downloading them from CloudSmith)

For Linux Distributions other than Debian the only way to use the Plugin Manager is to install OpenCPN inside the sandbox of Flatpak which is a little heavy and needs lots of updates iself (since I have been testing it I had to download 2Go of updates...)


BUT since o-charts-plugin replaces oernc-plugin and oesenc-plugin there is no way to display already paid charts : I can't anymore build a package for the o-charts-plugin which is required now on o-charts.org (the site asks to update to o-charts-plugin !!!)

There's no way to create this o-charts-plugin package that would replace and obsolete oernc and oesenc so that Linux users can display their paid charts

Flatpak ought not be the only solution for non-Debian Linux distributions and packages should be always allowed to be built (at least to use paid charts !!!)

[nohal]

Originally Posted by filochard

Hi

I have been packaging OpenCPN and its plugins, since version 3.2.2, for rpm based linux distributions (such as Fedora, OpenSuse, Mageia, Mandriva, PCLinux..)

I provided packages for oernc-plugin and oesenc-plugin that allowed to display charts bought on o-charts.org for OpenCPN 5.2.4 (still used until version 5.6.2 is ready : I'm now preparing packages to update OpenCPN for these distributions)

Now that the Plugin Manager is promoted some plugins can't anymore be packaged for a classical installation...

It's not a problem for Windows, nor for MacOS nor for Debian or Ubuntu since the plugins can be installed or updated by the Plugin Manager
(downloading them from CloudSmith)

For Linux Distributions other than Debian the only way to use the Plugin Manager is to install OpenCPN inside the sandbox of Flatpak which is a little heavy and needs lots of updates iself (since I have been testing it I had to download 2Go of updates...)


BUT since o-charts-plugin replaces oernc-plugin and oesenc-plugin there is no way to display already paid charts : I can't anymore build a package for the o-charts-plugin which is required now on o-charts.org (the site asks to update to o-charts-plugin !!!)

There's no way to create this o-charts-plugin package that would replace and obsolete oernc and oesenc so that Linux users can display their paid charts

Flatpak ought not be the only solution for non-Debian Linux distributions and packages should be always allowed to be built (at least to use paid charts !!!)

What prevents the o-charts plugin to be built on the forementioned distributions? Looking at https://github.com/bdbcat/o-charts_pi I don't see anything that would do it.

[bcn]

Filochard...


as you are experienced with packaging, you will recognize that it is an almost impossible task to build for all somewhere existing distros and architectures. Plus support those when issues come up.
Just the question of man hours available.
We are discussing for example what to do with ARMhf. Will be dropped probably. Likewise WinXP.


You were focusing on the o-charts plug-in, but the same question will come up for other plug-ins.
Flatpack is a solution, not your preferred one as you are explaining. But nobody shall say that users on the distros mentioned by you are cut off from their charts. This is just not the case.



If you like so, please feel invited to discuss - on Github perhaps, as Nohal suggested - how to find a elegant solution compiling directly for the distros supported by you. There will be for sure suggestions and hints how to do that. Every additional helping hand is very welcome.


Hubert

[filochard]

Originally Posted by nohal

What prevents the o-charts plugin to be built on the forementioned distributions? Looking at https://github.com/bdbcat/o-charts_pi I don't see anything that would do it.

Here is the problem : look at the content of
https://github.com/bdbcat/o-charts_p...nPackage.cmake

message(WARNING "Useless, empty and obsolete PluginPackage.cmake is included")


In github for oesenc_pi or oernc_pi this PluginPackage.cmake folder was not empty and contained rules to build installable packages for Windows (.exe) Apple (.pkg or .dmg) or Linux (deb or rpm) .
(to build for Linux we used a simple spec file and the libraries from our distribution, updating was very simple with the source code : just had to change the version number of each plugin)

Now the source only allows to create lots of targz for Cloudsmith

[filochard]

Hi bcn


I know that with flatpak o-charts_pi works
I know this as well as other plugins work now (I contributed a little to test the flatpak version with Rick Gleason and Alec Leamas...)



BUT before the flatpak 5.6.0 version was bugless I prefered to use my rpm packaged version that worked well and I have fallen on the problem of paid charts no more useable which is not very user friendly

[filochard]

Originally Posted by bcn

as you are experienced with packaging, you will recognize that it is an almost impossible task to build for all somewhere existing distros and architectures. Plus support those when issues come up.
Just the question of man hours available.

Hubert

Hi

I was perhaps a little misunderstood :

I don't ask the OpenCPN devs to build for all existing distros

What I say is that every opensource project allows each distro packagers to make and install a package (you need to download the gitsource, know the BuildRequired libraries, use cmake rules, then build, then install in a virtual buildroot)
It's the distro packager problem to adapt the build to the libraries of his distro and the paths where the components have to be really installed by its packages manager (paths to binaries to libraries to language to icons etc...)
building packages allows to build debug packages that allow to find where a program induces crashes

That's this way of doing that allowed me to find that logbookkonni_pi must not be built upon wxgtk >3.0 ...

The whole stuff was rebuilt for my distro with wxgtk 3.1 when this new version appeared ... and I got crashes immediately
(I spent hours to find the culprit : logbookkonni induced the crashes !)
and switched back to build OpenCPN and its plugins strictly upon wxgtk3.0


Since flatpak and most of the build inside the project were using wxgtk 3.0
this bug should never have been found and digged so soon before you switch to wxgtk3.1.5

I rang the bell soon : classical packages may be useful

o_charts_pi is the first opensource project that I encounter which allows to use cmake only for debian...
that was not the case for oesenc_pi nor for oernc_pi


Nevertheless
I found a workaround to cherry-pick the components of o-charts_pi built with
cmake
make tarball

But o-charts_pi induces a crash in OpenCPN 5.6.2 and I can't explore the reason why because this non canonical way to create a rpm doesn't allow to create a debug package which allows to dig to find the culprit processes

[bdbcat]

filochard...
Let's investigate the crash, then.
Please describe your process of building (in fine detail), so that we may reproduce your results, and help track down the fault.


Thanks
Dave

[filochard]

Originally Posted by bdbcat

filochard...
Let's investigate the crash, then.
Please describe your process of building (in fine detail), so that we may reproduce your results, and help track down the fault.


Thanks
Dave

Hi Dave

Since there is a limit for the txt files attached in this forum, I atttach a pdf copy of the spec file I used to create a rpm for o-charts_pi
this spec file allows to build rpms for 3 arches depending of which BuildSystem is used (since you don't provide anymore closed source for linux32bits we can only build rpms for linux 64bits, armv7hl, and aarch64)

Since there is no PluginPackage.cmake anymore I used a workaround :

- 1) I use the rule to make a tarball
- 2) in the folder where the built components are stored before being tarballed I cherry pick them to copy them in the right places for the future rpm (%buildroot) depending of which arch has been used to make the tarball
- 3) then I create the rpms with its files (for the 3 arches using the 3 different BuildSystems)

NB
we use 2 different paths for the libraries, depending on the arch
/usr/lib/ in 32bits
/usr/lib64/ in 64bits
to be sure that the plugin can find its components I created a double copy of the closed source library in 64bits system :
one in /usr/lib/ one in /usr/lib64/

NB bis
since this rpm building is not canonical I can't create debug rpms that would allow to debug the running program with gdb

OpenCPN 5.6.2 and its plugins have been built together with the same BuildSystem
(once with wxgtk3.0 once with wxgtk3.1.5)
NB I didn't use logbookkonni built with wxgtk3.1.5 : it induces crashes


When I install OpenCPN and its plugins evrything is OK
but when I use o-charts_pi I get a crash (segfault) when I try to actualize the list of the Charts (launching OpenCPN from a console doesn't bring any information)
The problem appears too when I use my USB dongle

[bdbcat]

filochard...
Thanks for the information. I'll dig into this. It may take me a few days to get an environment up and running. I retired my last Fedora virtual some years ago.


One more question:
What is the link to your site which contains your ported RPM files for plugins, and for OpenCPN 5.6.2?


Dave

[filochard]

Hi Dave


For the moment I only have the rpms for OpenCPN 5.6.2 and its plugins on my own computer : I can't yet propose them on our repositories because o-charts_pi is not working
The 5.2.4 version is still the only one that is available on Mageia's repos

Nevertheless I will upload the 5.6.2 version of OpenCPN and its plugins on a personal site and give you the link to it... so that you may install them


NB they are built upon wxgtk3.0 to be sure there is no segfault with logbookkonni until its source will be compliant with wxgtk3.1.5

[filochard]

Hi Dave
I just sent you a private message with the address where to find the rpms of OpenCPN 5.6.2 and some plugins built upon wxgtk 3.0 for linux 64bits


But I'm not sure I sent it correctly...
If you don't receive it I will write this address here

[bdbcat]

filochard...
The link received correctly by PM
Thanks
Dave

[filochard]

Hi Dave
Fine that you found it
You can explore the content of the rpms without installing them simply by uncompressing them
You will see the tree where each component is stored (and installed in a classical installation)
These trees are someway different of what is used by flatpak (Rick Gleason had to fight a little with logbookkonni_pi so that it may be used inside flatpak...)

Perhaps the segfault of o-charts_pi installed from my rpm comes from the fact that when building this rpm I had to use a workaround with the libo-charts_pi.so created by using "make tarball" . Maybe this libo-charts_pi.so uses wrong paths ...
Is this tarball only useable with the Plugin Manager ?

NB
OpenCPN 5.6.2 itself and most of the plugins still propose the recipe to build for a classical installation with the paths of a classical installation (by rpms for instance) these paths are different from what is used by the plugin manager or flatpak...
They allow to simply update an installed previous version of OpenCPN (I tested it from OpenCPN 5.2.4) without loosing previous settings and stored data...

[bdbcat]

filochard....
After fiddling around a bit with virtual Fedora36/KDE spin...
1. I built and installed OpenCPN natively. Starts and runs OK. Some trouble with toolbar location. Not investigated.

2. I built o-charts_pi from source, by simple cmake->make. I then cherry-picked the resulting libo-charts_pi.so file to /usr/local/lib64/opencpn.
3. I start OCPN. o-charts_pi appears in the list. I activate it. And it seems to run normally. Accesses the o-charts shop, offers charts to download, etc...Dongle does not work, since I am having trouble getting the USB ports to work on VBox, a common problem.
4. I did not try to build an RPM, yet. First lets get it running by manual methods.

So, my question:
What exact error symptom are you seeing with your RPM package? What are the exact steps you take in GUI to induce the fault?
Did you take a look at the OCPN logfile? It should show the paths used to find the plugin, load the helpers, etc.

Dave

[filochard]

Hi Dave
I built rpms for
OpenCPN 3.6.2
opencpn-o-charts-plugin-1.0.25.0
opencpn-radar-plugin
opencpn-s63-plugin
opencpn-sar-plugin

upon wxgtk3.0
and upon wxgtk3.1.5

Did successively a fresh install of one version of those rpms
the component are installed in :

/usr/bin/
/usr/lib64/
/usr/lib64/opencpn/
/usr/share/opencpn/
/usr/share/locale/
/usr/share/doc


For each test I launched opencpn from a console
(the dongle is installed)

I activate o-charts_pi
In the charts tab I click on the o-charts tab
the dongle is recognized

I click on the button "actualize the charts list"
a little window opens asking for email address and password
if I write a wrong address it informs me that it's not the good one
OK
I write the right address
I then write a wrong password
It informs me that it's a wrong password
OK
I have the same window with the right email address prewritten
I write the right password
then a little helix turn for 2 seconds and then OpenCPN crashes

The only message in the console is : segfault (core dumped)

NB before each test I erase the /home/myname/.opencpn folder


here is an extract from opencpn.conf :
[PlugIns/ocharts]
systemName=
loginUser=myname@myprovider (I anonymized it on this forum
loginKey=3678bf129f9a5148c0b92a775f0c8069
lastInstllDir=
LastEULAFile=
EnableFulldbRebuild=1
LastUpdate=
ShowExpiredCharts=0
[PlugIns/libdashboard_pi.so]
bEnabled=0
[PlugIns/libs63_pi.so]
bEnabled=0
[PlugIns/libroute_pi.so]
bEnabled=0
[PlugIns/libgrib_pi.so]
bEnabled=0
[PlugIns/libradar_pi.so]
bEnabled=0
[PlugIns/libo-charts_pi.so]
bEnabled=1
[PlugIns/libsar_pi.so]
bEnabled=0

and here some useful extracts from the logfile:

14:13:43.629 MESSAGE pluginmanager.cpp:1168 Checking plugin candidate: /usr/lib64/opencpn/libo-charts_pi.so
14:13:43.629 MESSAGE pluginmanager.cpp:2225 Plugin is compatible by elf library scan: true
14:13:43.629 MESSAGE pluginmanager.cpp:2364 PlugInManager: Loading PlugIn: /usr/lib64/opencpn/libo-charts_pi.so
14:13:43.632 MESSAGE OCPNPlatform.cpp:1672 Using plugin data path: /home/philippe/.local/share/opencpn/plugins;/home/philippe/.local/share/flatpak/exports/share/opencpn/plugins;/var/lib/flatpak/exports/share/opencpn/plugins;/usr/local/share/opencpn/plugins;/usr/share/opencpn/plugins;/usr/lib64/opencpn
14:13:43.632 MESSAGE pluginmanager.cpp:572 PlugInManager: Using data dirs from: /home/philippe/.local/share/opencpn/plugins;/home/philippe/.local/share/flatpak/exports/share/opencpn/plugins;/var/lib/flatpak/exports/share/opencpn/plugins;/usr/local/share/opencpn/plugins;/usr/share/opencpn/plugins;/usr/lib64/opencpn
14:13:43.632 MESSAGE pluginmanager.cpp:584 PlugInManager: using data dir: /usr/share/opencpn/plugins/o-charts_pi
14:13:43.632 INFO pluginmanager.cpp:2540 PlugInManager: /usr/lib64/opencpn/libo-charts_pi.so
14:13:43.632 INFO pluginmanager.cpp:2541 Plugin common name: o-charts
14:13:43.632 INFO pluginmanager.cpp:2543 API Version detected: 111
14:13:43.632 INFO pluginmanager.cpp:2544 PlugIn Version detected: 1.0

14:13:46.292 MESSAGE pluginmanager.cpp:2364 PlugInManager: Loading PlugIn: /usr/lib64/opencpn/libo-charts_pi.so
14:13:46.300 MESSAGE pluginmanager.cpp:572 PlugInManager: Using data dirs from: /home/philippe/.local/share/opencpn/plugins;/home/philippe/.local/share/flatpak/exports/share/opencpn/plugins;/var/lib/flatpak/exports/share/opencpn/plugins;/usr/local/share/opencpn/plugins;/usr/share/opencpn/plugins;/usr/lib64/opencpn
14:13:46.301 MESSAGE pluginmanager.cpp:584 PlugInManager: using data dir: /usr/share/opencpn/plugins/o-charts_pi
14:13:46.302 INFO pluginmanager.cpp:2540 PlugInManager: /usr/lib64/opencpn/libo-charts_pi.so
14:13:46.302 INFO pluginmanager.cpp:2541 Plugin common name: o-charts
14:13:46.302 INFO pluginmanager.cpp:2543 API Version detected: 111
14:13:46.302 INFO pluginmanager.cpp:2544 PlugIn Version detected: 1.0
14:13:46.302 MESSAGE pluginmanager.cpp:1539 PlugInManager: Initializing PlugIn: /usr/lib64/opencpn/libo-charts_pi.so
14:13:46.316 MESSAGE o-charts_pi.cpp:617 o-charts_pi::Using LD_LIBRARY_PATH: /usr/lib/opencpn:/home/philippe/.local/lib/opencpn:/usr/local/lib64/opencpn:/usr/lib64/opencpn:/usr/lib64/opencpn:/home/philippe/.local/lib/opencpn:/usr/local/lib64/opencpn:/usr/lib64/opencpn:/usr/lib64/opencpn
14:13:46.316 MESSAGE o-charts_pi.cpp:646 Path to oexserverd is: /usr/bin/oexserverd
14:13:46.369 MESSAGE fpr.cpp:99 oexserverd results:
14:13:46.369 MESSAGE fpr.cpp:102 1
14:13:46.369 MESSAGE o-charts_pi.cpp:649 Dongle detected
14:13:46.369 MESSAGE o-charts_pi.cpp:718 Default ChartInstall Directory is: /home/philippe/Charts
14:13:46.376 MESSAGE chartsymbols.cpp:1249 ChartSymbols loaded from /usr/share/opencpn/s57data/chartsymbols.xml
14:13:46.397 MESSAGE pluginmanager.cpp:572 PlugInManager: Using data dirs from: /home/philippe/.local/share/opencpn/plugins;/home/philippe/.local/share/flatpak/exports/share/opencpn/plugins;/var/lib/flatpak/exports/share/opencpn/plugins;/usr/local/share/opencpn/plugins;/usr/share/opencpn/plugins;/usr/lib64/opencpn
14:13:46.397 MESSAGE pluginmanager.cpp:584 PlugInManager: using data dir: /usr/share/opencpn/plugins/o-charts_pi
14:13:46.397 MESSAGE chartsymbols.cpp:126 ChartSymbols PatchFileloaded from /usr/share/opencpn/plugins/o-charts_pi/data/SymbolPatch1.xml
14:13:46.397 MESSAGE chartsymbols.cpp:126 ChartSymbols PatchFileloaded from /usr/share/opencpn/plugins/o-charts_pi/data/LUPPatch3.xml
14:13:46.397 MESSAGE chartsymbols.cpp:126 ChartSymbols PatchFileloaded from /usr/share/opencpn/plugins/o-charts_pi/data/LUPPatch2.xml
14:13:46.397 MESSAGE chartsymbols.cpp:126 ChartSymbols PatchFileloaded from /usr/share/opencpn/plugins/o-charts_pi/data/SymbolPatch6.xml
14:13:46.397 MESSAGE chartsymbols.cpp:126 ChartSymbols PatchFileloaded from /usr/share/opencpn/plugins/o-charts_pi/data/SymbolPatch2.xml
14:13:46.397 MESSAGE chartsymbols.cpp:126 ChartSymbols PatchFileloaded from /usr/share/opencpn/plugins/o-charts_pi/data/LUPPatch4.xml
14:13:46.397 MESSAGE chartsymbols.cpp:126 ChartSymbols PatchFileloaded from /usr/share/opencpn/plugins/o-charts_pi/data/SymbolPatch3.xml
14:13:46.397 MESSAGE chartsymbols.cpp:126 ChartSymbols PatchFileloaded from /usr/share/opencpn/plugins/o-charts_pi/data/SymbolPatch4.xml
14:13:46.397 MESSAGE chartsymbols.cpp:126 ChartSymbols PatchFileloaded from /usr/share/opencpn/plugins/o-charts_pi/data/LUPPatch1.xml
14:13:46.397 MESSAGE chartsymbols.cpp:126 ChartSymbols PatchFileloaded from /usr/share/opencpn/plugins/o-charts_pi/data/SymbolPatch5.xml
14:13:46.423 MESSAGE o-charts_pi.cpp:1003 o_charts_pi: Calculated pix/mm = 3.77953
14:13:46.423 MESSAGE o-charts_pi.cpp:2728 o_charts_pi: OpenGL-> Minimum cartographic line width: 1.0
14:13:46.474 MESSAGE fpr.cpp:99 oexserverd results:
14:13:46.474 MESSAGE fpr.cpp:102 1
14:13:48.208 MESSAGE o-charts_pi.cpp:1003 o_charts_pi: Calculated pix/mm = 3.77953
14:13:48.210 MESSAGE chcanv.cpp:2376 Metrics: m_display_size_mm: 508 g_Platform->getDisplaySize(): 1920:1080
14:13:48.210 MESSAGE chcanv.cpp:2381 wxDisplaySize(): 1920 1080
14:13:48.210 MESSAGE o-charts_pi.cpp:1003 o_charts_pi: Calculated pix/mm = 3.77953
14:13:50.175 MESSAGE o-charts_pi.cpp:1003 o_charts_pi: Calculated pix/mm = 3.77953
14:13:50.213 MESSAGE chcanv.cpp:2376 Metrics: m_display_size_mm: 508 g_Platform->getDisplaySize(): 1920:1080
14:13:50.213 MESSAGE chcanv.cpp:2381 wxDisplaySize(): 1920 1080
14:13:50.214 MESSAGE o-charts_pi.cpp:1003 o_charts_pi: Calculated pix/mm = 3.77953
14:13:50.275 MESSAGE glChartCanvas.cpp:732 BuildFBO 3
14:13:50.277 MESSAGE glChartCanvas.cpp:1217 OpenGL Framebuffer OK, size = 1342
14:13:50.324 MESSAGE glChartCanvas.cpp:732 BuildFBO 3
14:13:50.341 MESSAGE glChartCanvas.cpp:1217 OpenGL Framebuffer OK, size = 1342
14:13:50.360 MESSAGE glChartCanvas.cpp:732 BuildFBO 3
14:13:50.362 MESSAGE glChartCanvas.cpp:1217 OpenGL Framebuffer OK, size = 1342
14:13:50.374 MESSAGE glChartCanvas.cpp:732 BuildFBO 3
14:13:50.376 MESSAGE glChartCanvas.cpp:1217 OpenGL Framebuffer OK, size = 1342

and here is the end of the log file

14:13:52.978 MESSAGE o-charts_pi.cpp:1003 o_charts_pi: Calculated pix/mm = 3.77953
14:13:52.978 MESSAGE OCPNPlatform.cpp:1033 ChangeLocale: Language load for:
14:13:52.983 MESSAGE OCPNPlatform.cpp:1086 ChangeLocale: Locale Init OK for:
14:13:52.985 MESSAGE OCPNPlatform.cpp:1106 Loaded translation catalog for: opencpn-wmm_pi
14:13:52.988 MESSAGE OCPNPlatform.cpp:1106 Loaded translation catalog for: opencpn-chartdldr_pi
14:13:52.991 MESSAGE OCPNPlatform.cpp:1106 Loaded translation catalog for: opencpn-o-charts_pi
14:13:52.991 MESSAGE OCPNPlatform.cpp:1111 Loading catalog for opencpn core.
14:13:52.996 MESSAGE OCPNPlatform.cpp:952 Getting DefaultSystemLocale...
14:13:58.676 MESSAGE fpr.cpp:99 oexserverd results:
14:13:58.676 MESSAGE fpr.cpp:102 1

NB :
after the crash, the folder /home/myname/.opencpn/o_chats_pi/ remains empty